Category Archives: The Stewart Family

Born in New York City, and speaking with a distinct accent, Alan Kaplan brought a distinctive character to his work as a Naturalist for the East Bay Regional Parks. Based in Tilden Regional Park, in the hills behind Berkeley, Alan interpreted the history and natural history of the area through guided hikes, school programs, and the preparation of exhibits for many years, until his retirement. He’s also provided leadership in organizations that provide education in interpretation for his fellow naturalists in the west, through his work in the old Western Interpreters Association. (Note that “interpreter” in the park sense refers to what used to be called “naturalists” – those people in distinctive uniforms who interpret the advanced concepts of a park’s cultural and natural history into common English for visitors.)

That’s where I first met him. There, he played a foundational role in the publication of the George R. Stewart biography. He was the First Publisher of my writings about GRS.

In 1986, the WIA conference was held in Yosemite National Park. I presented a talk, “George R. Stewart: An Author for Interpreters.” As the the title implies, Stewart’s histories and ecological novels are excellent resources for those interpreting the natural or human history of the West.

I was pleasantly surprised when Alan, then President of WIA, encouraged conference attendees to attend the GRS session. And even more pleasantly surprised when the session was crammed full of enthusiastic naturalists and interpreters.

As the session ended, Alan, who was in the audience, rose to second my comments about Stewart’s value for interpreters. He emphasized the power of Stewart’s writing by quoting the closing lines of FIRE. Doing so, he even educated me – I knew FIREwell, but had never given the ecological power of its closing such careful attention. (FIRE was so well-researched and written that the U.S. Forest Service used it in their training programs for summer fire lookouts.)

Alan asked for an article for the WIA Newsletter, Bayways. Entitled “The Man Who Named The Wind,” the article was a written summary of the GRS talk. It was the first publication, for a large audience, of material which would eventually expand into the McFarland biography.

Alan also interpreted the work of George R. Stewart to Tilden Regional Park visitors. For many years, on a weekend close to the day in August when Stewart died, Alan led a “George R. Stewart Memorial Hike” to the summit of one of Tilden’s peak . The hike focused on Stewart’s work, especially his remarkable NAMES ON THE LAND. The book is not a dictionary of American place names, but a history which explains in beautiful prose WHY we named places a certain way in a certain era. As Wallace Stegner once wrote about NAMES (here paraphrased) “No one ever wrote a book like this before; no one has written one since.” Visitors who joined Alan’s hike learned about Stewart, his work, and especially his unique work about place-naming. (NAMES ON THE LAND has just been translated into Chinese for the millions of citizens of that country who are enamored of American culture.)

Once, friends and I joined Alan on the hike: George and Theodosia’s son Jack, Jack’s wife Joyce, and former high school student Denise L. Barney and her husband Barney hiked along; afterward we crammed into the back of the tiny Chinook microcamper with Alan to share some good wine and crackers (Alan abstained!)

As the GRS biography was written, and published, Alan joined public events which described GRS and my work. Once, to my chagrin, he was at a talk at the Bancroft Library and I did not notice him so did not introduce him; fortunately, when he came up afterward to say hello I was able to give him a well-deserved gift – a first edition of STORM, autographed by GRS, with a rare misprint on one page.

He also shared our GRS dinner at the beautiful, historic UC Berkeley Faculty Club, sitting next to me, and we were able to talk about shared GRS experiences.

To sum up – Alan Kaplan, Naturalist, played a major role in the work which led to the eventual publication of THE LIFE AND TRUTH OF GEORGE R. STEWART. He also inspired me to take a second, deeper look at Stewart’s books, especially FIRE. Stewart, and the GRS biography owe him much. I am deeply grateful for his encouragement.

Two distinguished British authors, Henry Fothringham, OBE, and Charles Kinder Bradbury, have just released their beautiful coffee table book, Stewart Heritage. The book devotes a page to each of several dozen famous and influential Stewarts. One of the Stewarts they profile is our focus in these pages: George R. Stewart.

This is the third recent work honoring Stewart and his work. There was an essay in the literary magazine of the Chicago Tribune, “George R. Stewart: Unrestrained by literary borders,” the several pages devoted to Stewart’s Storm in Snowbound, Mark McLaughlin’s just-released book about the largest storms recorded in the Sierra Nevada, the fine interpretive sign at Donner Summit so ably designed and place by Bill Oudegeest of the Donner Summit Historical Society (followed by several articles in the Society’s magazine), the Berkeley ePlaque edited and published by Robert Kehlmann and his stalwart colleagues; and now this fine one-page essay which succinctly summarizes Stewart’s life and work.

Although I can’t reproduce the entire GRS page from Stewart Heritage for reasons of copyright, I can post a portion here to give readers the chance to see the quality of the book and the George R. Stewart entry.

There is clearly a continuing interest in George R. Stewart and his work. The new, reduced price on the GRS biography and the planned mini-series of Earth Abides will increase that interest.

This weblog is not designed as a marketing tool. But when something exceptional related to George R. Stewart comes along, I’ll always share it with you. If you are a Stewart, or know a Stewart, or a passionate fan of George R. Stewart and his work, you might consider Stewart Heritage (which I understand was printed in a limited edition).

Post Script. Having had the chance to review the book in more depth, I find it rich in history across disciplines, across borders, even across racial lines. There are entries which sweep the Earth from Panamint City near Trona, California – founded by stage robbers who discovered silver there – to Brittany (“Little Britain”) and a tussle there between Satan and Saint George over Mont St. Michel – to Hollywood and James Stewart – and on and on. Disciplines include science and engineering – the authors have expertise in chemistry and metallurgy – painting, music, film, sport, military accomplishments, academia, politics, law – think Justice Potter Stewart – and, of course, writing. It is a fascinating read.

Jill Stewart Evenson, daughter of George and Ted Stewart, passed away late last month of complications from surgery. She was 90.

Named Jane, but always called Jill, she was born in 1925. She lived a long and interesting life, leaving home to move to San Francisco in the 1940s, marrying Morris Evenson of the Painters Union, and raising her family. But she still found time to earn two Masters of Art, one in Educational Research and the other in Art. She worked in Educational Research at the Far Western Lab for Educational Research. After retirement, she helped to coordinate artists’ shows in her retirement. She even wrote some poetry; one poem was highly praised by her author father.

Jill was of invaluable help in all the GRS work and projects. In fact, Jill was the one who introduced George and Ted Stewart to Thornton State Beach, and thus, indirectly, to me.

When I was researching the GRS biography, Jill graciously invited me to her home in Santa Rosa so I could interview her. Then she arranged with her daughter Anna, the Stewarts’ first grandchild, a chance to review the family photo collection and scan in many of the photos for use in the biography.

Jill will be remembered as long as the GRS biography lives. More, she will be known to all who read Earth Abides for as long as that beloved classic survives – it is dedicated to her. Her father gave her the first copy off the press, autographed to her.

Here are some photos of Jill:

Jill (in striped shirt) with Jack Stewart (back to the door) and others on Wallace and Mary Stegner’s house, early 1940s.

Stewart family Portrait, mid-late 40s. Jill is peeking out at the left.